Tips and Tricks of the Trade

I decided to start sharing some tips and tricks that I've learned either through work or parenting books. Through the years I've picked up some tips and tricks from speech therapists, occupational therapists, social workers, and many other professionals. So...to start us off. Here's a tip from one of Quinn's first speech therapists.

Age: 2 years and above
Area of Development: Speech

As soon as your child is able to suck from a straw, you should replace all sippy cups with straw cups. You really should stop using sippy cups by two years of age and your child should be able to drink from an open mouth cup at the table. We were doing that, but allowing Quinn to use sippy cups in the living room. Sippy cups do not help the muscles in the mouth area to develop strength. Having your child drink from a straw actually gives their muscles a little work-out and these straw cups keep the messes to a minimum. She also suggested giving him yogurt or thick shakes to drink through a straw to really work out those muscles (we never did do this - I thought it was kind of mean).

Did you find this tip helpful? Do you have a tip you'd like to share? Leave it in the comments or email me at mccathy at comcast dot net.